JP2023102619A - Vehicle transportation planning device, management server and vehicle transportation device - Google Patents

Abstract

To enable movement of a vehicle mounted with an internal combustion engine in a predetermined area where driving of the internal combustion engine is prohibited or restricted.SOLUTION: A vehicle transportation system 100 includes a management server 20 and at least one vehicle transportation device 30. The management server 20 can communicate with the vehicle transportation device 30 and a vehicle 1 via a wireless base station 40 and a communication network 50 such as the Internet network or a carrier network. The vehicle transportation planning device provided in the management server 20 or the vehicle 1 forms a vehicle transportation plan, proposes vehicle transportation in a predetermined area where driving of an internal combustion engine is prohibited or restricted to a passenger of the vehicle 1 equipped with the internal combustion engine, and requests arrangement of the vehicle transportation device 30 for transporting the vehicle 1 when the passenger wishes to transport the vehicle 1.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD The present invention relates to a vehicle transportation planning device, a management server, and a vehicle transportation device.

2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, in order to reduce air pollution, engine-restricted areas have been set where the driving of an internal combustion engine mounted on a vehicle is prohibited or restricted in places such as urban areas with heavy traffic. Patent Literature 1 describes that when a plug-in hybrid vehicle travels in an engine restricted area, the internal combustion engine is stopped and power for travel is output only by the electric motor.

JP 2020-104755 A

However, when the SOC of the battery that supplies electric power to the electric motor is insufficient, it becomes difficult for the plug-in hybrid vehicle to travel in the engine restricted area. Further, when the destination is in the engine restricted area, it is strongly desired to move the vehicle within the engine restricted area even if the vehicle is equipped with only an internal combustion engine as a drive source.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to make it possible to move a vehicle equipped with an internal combustion engine in a predetermined area where the driving of the internal combustion engine is prohibited or restricted.

The gist of the present disclosure is as follows.

(1) A vehicle transportation planning apparatus comprising: a transportation proposal unit that proposes transportation of a vehicle in a predetermined area where driving of the internal combustion engine is prohibited or restricted to an occupant of a vehicle equipped with an internal combustion engine;

(2) The vehicle transportation planning apparatus according to (1) above, wherein the transportation proposal unit determines whether to propose transportation of the vehicle based on a travel route of the vehicle preset in the vehicle.

(3) The vehicle transportation planning device according to (1) or (2) above, wherein the transportation proposing unit proposes transportation of the vehicle when the distance from the current position of the vehicle to the boundary of the predetermined area has decreased to a predetermined distance.

(4) The vehicle transportation planning device according to (1) or (2) above, wherein the transportation proposal unit proposes transportation of the vehicle when the vehicle passes through a predetermined position around the predetermined area.

(5) The vehicle transportation planning apparatus according to any one of (1) to (4) above, wherein the vehicle is a plug-in hybrid vehicle equipped with a battery that can be charged by an external power source, and the transportation proposal unit determines whether or not to propose transportation of the vehicle based on the SOC of the battery.

(6) The vehicle transportation planning apparatus according to any one of (1) to (5) above, wherein the transportation arrangement unit transmits the occupant's preference information regarding travel of the vehicle transportation device to a management server that manages transportation of the vehicle when requesting the transportation of the vehicle transportation device.

(7) A management server that instructs a vehicle transportation device to transport the vehicle when an occupant of the vehicle equipped with the internal combustion engine wishes to transport the vehicle in a predetermined area where driving of the internal combustion engine is prohibited or restricted.

(8) A vehicle transport apparatus configured to transport the vehicle by autonomous driving in a predetermined area when an occupant of the vehicle equipped with the internal combustion engine wishes to transport the vehicle in a predetermined area where driving of the internal combustion engine is prohibited or restricted.

According to the present invention, it is possible to move a vehicle equipped with an internal combustion engine in a predetermined area where driving of the internal combustion engine is prohibited or restricted.

FIG. 1 is a diagram schematically showing the configuration of a vehicle provided with a vehicle transportation planning device according to a first embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a diagram schematically showing a vehicle transportation system that realizes transportation of vehicles. FIG. 3 is a diagram schematically showing the configuration of a management server; FIG. 4 is a sequence diagram schematically showing a series of flows when a vehicle is transported using the vehicle transport apparatus. FIG. 5 is a diagram showing an example of a travel route when a vehicle transport device transports a vehicle. FIG. 6 is a functional block diagram of the processor of the ECU. FIG. 7 is a flow chart showing a control routine for transport proposal processing in the first embodiment. FIG. 8 is a diagram showing an example of a proposal screen for proposing transportation of the vehicle to the occupants of the vehicle. FIG. 9 is a diagram showing an example of a setting screen for setting preferences of vehicle occupants. FIG. 10 is a diagram schematically showing the configuration of a vehicle provided with a vehicle transportation planning device according to a second embodiment of the invention. FIG. 11 is a flow chart showing a control routine for transport proposal processing in the second embodiment.

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. In the following description, the same reference numerals are given to the same constituent elements.

<First embodiment>
First, a first embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 9. FIG. FIG. 1 is a diagram schematically showing the configuration of a vehicle 1 provided with a vehicle transport planning apparatus according to a first embodiment of the invention. The vehicle 1 includes an internal combustion engine 2 , a communication device 3 , a GNSS receiver 4 , a map database 5 , a navigation device 6 , a human machine interface (HMI) 7 and an electronic control unit (ECU) 10 . The internal combustion engine 2, the communication device 3, the GNSS receiver 4, the map database 5, the navigation device 6, and the HMI 7 are communicably connected to the ECU 10 via an in-vehicle network conforming to standards such as CAN (Controller Area Network).

The internal combustion engine 2 is, for example, a gasoline engine or a diesel engine, and outputs power by combusting a mixture of fuel and air in a cylinder. The internal combustion engine 2 outputs driving force (power for running) of the vehicle 1 and functions as a driving source of the vehicle 1 . The ECU 10 executes various controls for the internal combustion engine 2 .

The communication device 3 can communicate with the outside of the vehicle 1 and enables communication between the vehicle 1 and the outside of the vehicle 1 . For example, the communication device 3 includes a wide area communication device (for example, a data communication module (DCM)) that enables wide area communication between the vehicle 1 and the outside of the vehicle 1 . The ECU 10 communicates with the outside of the vehicle 1 using the communication device 3 .

The GNSS receiver 4 detects the current position of the vehicle 1 (for example, the latitude and longitude of the vehicle 1) based on positioning information obtained from multiple (for example, three or more) positioning satellites. Specifically, the GNSS receiver 4 acquires a plurality of positioning satellites and receives radio waves transmitted from the positioning satellites. Then, the GNSS receiver 4 calculates the distance to the positioning satellite based on the difference between the transmission time and the reception time of the radio wave, and detects the current position of the vehicle 1 based on the distance to the positioning satellite and the position (trajectory information) of the positioning satellite. The output of the GNSS receiver 4 , that is, the current position of the vehicle 1 detected by the GNSS receiver 4 is transmitted to the ECU 10 .

The map database 5 stores map information. The ECU 10 acquires map information from the map database 5 . A map database may be provided outside the vehicle 1 (for example, a server or the like), and the ECU 10 may acquire map information from outside the vehicle 1 .

The navigation device 6 sets the travel route of the vehicle 1 to the destination based on the current position of the vehicle 1 detected by the GNSS receiver 4, the map information of the map database 5, the input by the occupant (eg, driver) of the vehicle 1, and the like. The travel route set by the navigation device 6 is transmitted to the ECU 10 .

The HMI 7 exchanges information between the vehicle 1 and an occupant (for example, a driver) of the vehicle 1 . The HMI 7 has an output unit (e.g., display, speaker, vibration unit, etc.) that outputs information to the occupant of the vehicle 1, and an input unit (e.g., touch panel, operation button, operation switch, microphone, etc.) through which information is input by the occupant of the vehicle 1. The output of the ECU 10 is notified to the occupant of the vehicle 1 via the HMI 7 and the input from the occupant of the vehicle 1 is transmitted to the ECU 10 via the HMI 7 . HMI 7 is an example of an input device, an output device or an input/output device. In addition, the personal digital assistant (smartphone, tablet terminal, etc.) of the passenger|crew of the vehicle 1 is connected by a wire or radio|wireless so that communication with ECU10 is possible, and may function as HMI7. Also, the HMI 7 may be integrated with the navigation device 6 .

The ECU 10 executes various controls of the vehicle 1 . As shown in FIG. 1, the ECU 10 has a communication interface 11, a memory 12 and a processor 13. The communication interface 11 and memory 12 are connected to the processor 13 via signal lines. Although one ECU 10 is provided in this embodiment, a plurality of ECUs may be provided for each function.

The communication interface 11 has an interface circuit for connecting the ECU 10 to the in-vehicle network. The ECU 10 is connected to other in-vehicle equipment via a communication interface 11 . The communication interface 11 is an example of a communication section of the ECU 10 .

The memory 12 has, for example, a volatile semiconductor memory and a non-volatile semiconductor memory. The memory 12 stores computer programs, data, etc. used when the processor 13 executes various processes. The memory 12 is an example of a storage section of the ECU 10 .

The processor 13 has one or more CPUs (Central Processing Units) and their peripheral circuits. Note that the processor 13 may further have an arithmetic circuit such as a logic operation unit or a numerical operation unit.

By the way, in order to reduce air pollution, areas such as urban areas with heavy traffic have been set where the driving of internal combustion engines mounted on vehicles is prohibited or restricted (hereinafter also referred to as "engine restricted areas"). The engine restricted area is a range surrounded by a predetermined boundary, and examples of the engine restricted area include LEZ (Low Emission Zone), ULEZ (Ultra Low Emission Zone), ZEZ (Zero Emission Zone), and the like.

In principle, only vehicles that can run without driving an internal combustion engine (e.g., plug-in hybrid vehicles (PHEV), electric vehicles (BEV), or fuel cell vehicles (FCEV)) are permitted to pass through the engine restricted area, and if the internal combustion engine is driven in the engine restricted area, fines or the like are imposed on the occupants of the vehicle.

However, even if only the internal combustion engine 2 is mounted as a driving source like the vehicle 1, when the destination exists in the engine restricted area, it is strongly desired to move the vehicle 1 within the engine restricted area. Therefore, in the present embodiment, the vehicle 1 is transported by the vehicle transport apparatus according to the wishes of the occupants of the vehicle 1, thereby making it possible to move the vehicle 1 in the engine restricted area.

FIG. 2 is a diagram schematically showing a vehicle transportation system 100 that realizes transportation of the vehicle 1. As shown in FIG. The vehicle transport system 100 includes a management server 20 and at least one vehicle transport device 30 . The management server 20 can communicate with the vehicle transport device 30 and the vehicle 1 via a radio base station 40 such as a macro cell or small cell and a communication network 50 such as the Internet network or carrier network.

The vehicle transport device 30 is a self-propelled vehicle transport device, and has a known configuration (see, for example, US Pat. No. 10590669, JP-A-2018-204373, etc.) for transporting the vehicle 1 by autonomous travel. For example, the vehicle transport device 30 crawls into the space between the bottom of the vehicle 1 and the road surface from the front or rear of the vehicle 1 and lifts the four tires of the vehicle 1 to support and transport the vehicle 1 .

As shown in FIG. 2 , the vehicle transport device 30 has a drive motor 32 that drives the drive wheels 31 , and the drive motor 32 outputs driving force (power for running) of the vehicle transport device 30 . That is, the vehicle transport device 30 is an electric vehicle, and can transport the vehicle 1 without driving the internal combustion engine. The vehicle transport device 30 also has a communication module 33 capable of communicating with the radio base station 40 and communicates with the management server 20 using the communication module 33 .

The vehicle transport device 30 transports the vehicle 1 according to transport instructions from the management server 20 . For example, the vehicle transport device 30 moves from a predetermined standby location to near the boundary of the engine restricted area, and transports the vehicle 1 from near the boundary of the engine restricted area to a destination within the engine restricted area. The waiting place of the vehicle transport device 30 is provided, for example, inside or outside the engine restricted area near the boundary of the engine restricted area. Note that the waiting locations of the vehicle transport device 30 may be provided at a plurality of points. Also, the standby place for the vehicle transport device 30 may be configured to accommodate a plurality of vehicle transport devices 30 .

The management server 20 manages transportation of the vehicle 1 using the vehicle transportation device 30 . FIG. 3 is a diagram schematically showing the configuration of the management server 20. As shown in FIG. The management server 20 has a communication interface 21 , a storage device 22 , a memory 23 and a processor 24 . The communication interface 21, storage device 22 and memory 23 are connected to the processor 24 via signal lines. The management server 20 may further include an input device such as a keyboard and mouse, an output device such as a display, and the like. Also, the management server 20 may be composed of a plurality of computers.

The communication interface 21 has an interface circuit for connecting the management server 20 to the communication network 50 . The management server 20 communicates with the vehicle 1 and the vehicle transport device 30 via the communication network 50 . The communication interface 21 is an example of a communication section of the management server 20 .

The storage device 22 has, for example, a hard disk drive (HDD), a solid state drive (SDD) or an optical recording medium and its access device. The storage device 22 stores various data, for example, information (identification information, position information, etc.) of the vehicle transport device 30, computer programs for the processor 24 to execute various processes, and the like. The storage device 22 is an example of a storage unit of the management server 20 .

The memory 23 has a nonvolatile semiconductor memory (for example, RAM). The memory 23 temporarily stores various data used when various processes are executed by the processor 24, for example. The memory 23 is another example of the storage section of the management server 20 .

The processor 24 has one or more CPUs and their peripheral circuits, and executes various processes. It should be noted that processor 24 may further comprise other arithmetic circuitry such as a logic arithmetic unit, a numerical arithmetic unit or a graphics processing unit. The processor 24 is an example of a controller of the management server 20 .

FIG. 4 is a sequence diagram schematically showing a series of flows when the vehicle 1 is transported using the vehicle transport device 30. As shown in FIG. In this sequence diagram, communication between the vehicle 1 and the management server 20 and communication between the vehicle transport device 30 and the management server 20 are performed via the radio base station 40 and the communication network 50 .

When the vehicle 1 is predicted to enter the engine restricted area, the vehicle 1 proposes transportation of the vehicle 1 to the occupants of the vehicle 1 (step S1). When the occupant of the vehicle 1 desires transportation of the vehicle 1, a transportation request is transmitted from the vehicle 1 to the management server 20 (step S2).

When the transportation request is transmitted from the vehicle 1 to the management server 20, the management server 20 creates a transportation plan (step S3). The transport plan includes, for example, pick-up points, pick-up times, and the like. The pick-up point means a point at which the vehicle 1 is loaded onto the vehicle transport device 30, that is, a starting point of vehicle transport. The pick-up time means the estimated arrival time of the vehicle transport device 30 at the pick-up point. When the vehicle transport system 100 includes a plurality of vehicle transport devices 30, the management server 20 selects one vehicle transport device 30 for transporting the vehicle 1 from among the plurality of vehicle transport devices 30 when creating a transport plan.

The transport plan created by the management server 20 is transmitted from the management server 20 to the vehicle 1 (step S4). The vehicle 1 displays the transport plan transmitted from the management server 20 to the occupants of the vehicle 1 via the HMI 7 (step S5). When the occupant of the vehicle 1 approves the transportation plan, the vehicle 1 transmits an approval notice to the management server 20 (step S6).

When the management server 20 receives the approval notice from the vehicle 1, it transmits a transportation instruction to the vehicle transportation device 30 (step S7). The transport instruction includes, for example, a pick-up point, a pick-up time, a movement start time to the pick-up point, a travel route from the current position (for example, waiting place) of the vehicle transport apparatus 30 to the pick-up point, and the like.

Upon receiving the transport instruction from the management server 20, the vehicle transport apparatus 30 transports the vehicle 1 based on the transport instruction (step S8).

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing an example of a traveling route (conveyance route) when the vehicle conveyance device 30 conveys the vehicle 1. As shown in FIG. In the example of FIG. 5, the pick-up point is set outside the boundary of the engine restricted area, and the drop-off point is set inside the engine restricted area. A drop-off point means a point at which the vehicle 1 is unloaded from the vehicle transportation device 30, that is, an end point of vehicle transportation. The drop-off point is set by the occupant of the vehicle 1 when transportation of the vehicle 1 is started, for example, via the HMI 7, the mobile terminal of the occupant of the vehicle 1, or the like. Also, the travel route from the pick-up point to the drop-off point is set by the vehicle transport device 30 or the management server 20 .

While the vehicle 1 is transported by the vehicle transport device 30, the internal combustion engine 2 of the vehicle 1 is stopped. Therefore, by transporting the vehicle 1 along the travel route as shown in FIG. 5, the occupant of the vehicle 1 can move to a desired destination within the engine restricted area while remaining in the vehicle 1. If the destination exists beyond the engine restricted area, the drop-off point may be set near the boundary of the engine restricted area, and the traveling route of the vehicle transport device 30 may be set to cross the engine restricted area.

In this embodiment, the ECU 10 of the vehicle 1 functions as a vehicle transportation planning device, and the ECU 10 of the vehicle 1 makes a proposal for vehicle transportation as described above. FIG. 6 is a functional block diagram of the processor 13 of the ECU 10. As shown in FIG. In this embodiment, the processor 13 has a transportation proposal unit 15 and a transportation arrangement unit 16 . The transportation proposal unit 15 and the transportation arrangement unit 16 are functional modules realized by the processor 13 of the ECU 10 executing a computer program stored in the memory 12 of the ECU 10 . Note that the transportation proposal unit 15 and the transportation arrangement unit 16 may be implemented by a dedicated arithmetic circuit provided in the processor 13 .

The transportation proposal unit 15 proposes transportation of the vehicle 1 in the engine restricted area to the occupant of the vehicle 1 . For example, the transportation proposal unit 15 determines whether or not to propose the transportation of the vehicle 1 based on the travel route of the vehicle 1 preset in the vehicle 1 . As a result, it is possible to confirm with the occupant of the vehicle 1 whether or not the vehicle needs to be transported before the vehicle 1 approaches the engine restricted area, so that the vehicle can be transported smoothly. For example, the transportation proposal unit 15 proposes transportation of the vehicle 1 when the traveling route of the vehicle 1 includes the engine restricted area, and does not propose transportation of the vehicle 1 when the traveling route of the vehicle 1 does not include the engine restricted area.

On the other hand, even if the travel route of the vehicle 1 is not set, there is a high possibility that the occupant of the vehicle 1 wishes to be transported when the vehicle 1 is traveling near the engine restricted area. Therefore, the transportation proposal unit 15 may propose transportation of the vehicle 1 when the distance from the current position of the vehicle 1 to the boundary of the engine restricted area has decreased to a predetermined distance. As a result, even when the travel route of the vehicle 1 is not set, it is possible to propose vehicle transportation at an appropriate timing.

When the occupant of the vehicle 1 approves the proposal of vehicle transportation, that is, when the occupant of the vehicle 1 desires transportation of the vehicle 1, the transportation arrangement part 16 requests the arrangement of the vehicle transportation device 30 for transporting the vehicle 1. - 特許庁As a result, the management server 20 instructs the vehicle transport device 30 to transport the vehicle 1, and the vehicle transport device 30 transports the vehicle 1 by autonomous traveling in the engine restricted area. Therefore, it is possible to move the vehicle 1 equipped with the internal combustion engine 2 in the engine restricted area.

Hereinafter, with reference to FIG. 7, a detailed description will be given of the control flow when the vehicle 1 requests transportation of the vehicle. FIG. 7 is a flow chart showing a control routine for transport proposal processing in the first embodiment. This control routine is executed by the processor 13 of the ECU 10 according to a computer program stored in the memory 12 of the ECU 10 .

First, in step S101, the transport proposal unit 15 determines whether or not a travel route for the vehicle 1 is set. If it is determined that the travel route for the vehicle 1 has been set, the control routine proceeds to step S102.

In step S102, the transportation proposal unit 15 determines whether or not the travel route of the vehicle 1 includes an engine restricted area. For example, the location information of the engine restricted area is stored in the map information of the map database 5, and the transport proposal unit 15 makes this determination by comparing the travel route of the vehicle 1 with the range of the engine restricted area. If it is determined in step S102 that the travel route of the vehicle 1 does not include an engine restricted area, the control routine ends. On the other hand, if it is determined in step S102 that the travel route of the vehicle 1 includes an engine restricted area, the control routine proceeds to step S103.

In step S<b>103 , the transportation proposal unit 15 proposes transportation of the vehicle 1 in the engine restricted area to the occupant of the vehicle 1 via the HMI 7 . For example, the transportation proposal unit 15 displays a proposal screen as shown in FIG. 8 on the display of the HMI 7. FIG. In this example of the proposal screen, the positional relationship between the current position of the vehicle 1 and the engine restricted area is visually shown, and the occupant of the vehicle 1 selects whether or not to transport the vehicle on the proposal screen.

Next, in step S<b>104 , the transport arrangement unit 16 determines whether or not the occupant of the vehicle 1 has approved the proposal for transporting the vehicle, that is, whether or not the occupant of the vehicle 1 wishes to transport the vehicle 1 . If it is determined that the vehicle transport proposal has been rejected by the occupants of the vehicle 1, this control routine ends. On the other hand, if it is determined that the occupant of the vehicle 1 has approved the proposal for transporting the vehicle, the control routine proceeds to step S105.

In step S<b>105 , the transport arrangement unit 16 requests the management server 20 to arrange the vehicle transport device 30 for transporting the vehicle 1 . Specifically, the transport arrangement unit 16 transmits a transport request to the management server 20 via the communication network 50 . The transportation request includes, for example, the current position of the vehicle 1, identification information of the vehicle 1 (for example, license plate number, vehicle type, color, etc.). After step S105, the control routine ends.

On the other hand, if it is determined in step S101 that the travel route for the vehicle 1 has not been set, the control routine proceeds to step S106. In step S106, the transportation proposal unit 15 determines whether or not the distance from the current position of the vehicle 1 to the boundary of the engine restricted area has decreased to a predetermined distance. For example, the location information of the engine restricted area is stored in the map information of the map database 5, and the transportation proposal unit 15 makes this determination by calculating the distance between the current position of the vehicle 1 detected by the GNSS receiver 4 and the boundary of the engine restricted area.

If it is determined in step S106 that the distance from the current position of the vehicle 1 to the boundary of the engine restricted area has not decreased to the predetermined distance, this control routine ends. On the other hand, if it is determined in step S106 that the distance from the current position of the vehicle 1 to the boundary of the engine restricted area has decreased to the predetermined distance, the control routine proceeds to step S103. In this case, as described above, steps S103 to S105 are executed, and the vehicle transfer device 30 is requested to be arranged according to the wishes of the occupant of the vehicle 1 .

In step S102, the transportation proposal unit 15 may determine whether or not the distance between the travel route of the vehicle 1 and the boundary of the engine restricted area is equal to or less than a predetermined distance. That is, the transportation proposal unit 15 may propose transportation of the vehicle 1 when the distance between the travel route of the vehicle 1 and the boundary of the engine restricted area is equal to or less than a predetermined distance.

Further, in step S106, the transportation proposal unit 15 may determine whether or not the vehicle 1 has passed through a predetermined position around the engine restricted area. That is, the transportation proposal unit 15 may propose transportation of the vehicle 1 when the vehicle 1 passes through a predetermined position around the engine restricted area. In this case, the predetermined position is set, for example, on the road leading to the engine restricted area.

Further, the transportation arrangement unit 16 may transmit preference information of the occupant of the vehicle 1 regarding traveling of the vehicle transportation device 30 to the management server 20 when requesting the transportation of the vehicle transportation device 30 . As a result, the preference of the occupant of the vehicle 1 can be reflected in the running state of the vehicle 1 when the vehicle 1 is transported by the vehicle transport device 30, and the degree of satisfaction in transporting the vehicle can be further enhanced.

In this case, for example, after the occupant of the vehicle 1 approves the vehicle transportation proposal, the transportation arrangement unit 16 displays a setting screen as shown in FIG. 9 on the display of the HMI 7 . In this example of the setting screen, the setting of the acceleration/deceleration during transportation of the vehicle is shown in three stages (small, medium, and large in order from the smallest), and the occupant of the vehicle 1 selects the desired setting of the acceleration/deceleration during transportation of the vehicle on the setting screen. For example, the upper limit value of acceleration/deceleration corresponding to the setting of three stages is predetermined, and the upper limit value of acceleration/deceleration corresponding to the selected setting is transmitted from the management server 20 to the vehicle transfer apparatus 30 as a transfer instruction. In this case, the vehicle transport device 30 transports the vehicle 1 so that the upper limit value of the acceleration/deceleration of the vehicle transport device 30 does not reach the set value.

In the setting screen, either one of the ride comfort and the transport speed may be selected by the occupant of the vehicle 1 as a priority when transporting the vehicle. In this case, when ride comfort is selected as a priority, the acceleration/deceleration or speed during vehicle transport is made smaller than when transport speed is selected as a priority.

<Second embodiment>
The vehicle transportation planning device and vehicle transportation system according to the second embodiment are basically the same as the vehicle transportation planning device and vehicle transportation system according to the first embodiment, except for the points described below. For this reason, the second embodiment of the present invention will be described below, focusing on the differences from the first embodiment.

FIG. 10 is a diagram schematically showing the configuration of a vehicle 1' provided with a vehicle transport planning apparatus according to the second embodiment of the invention. The vehicle 1 ′ comprises an internal combustion engine 2 , a communication device 3 , a GNSS receiver 4 , a map database 5 , a navigation device 6 and an HMI 7 , as well as a motor 8 and a battery 9 . The motor 8 is communicably connected to the ECU 10 via an in-vehicle network conforming to standards such as CAN.

The motor 8 is rotationally driven by electric power supplied from the battery 9 and outputs driving force (power for running) of the vehicle 1 . That is, in the second embodiment, the internal combustion engine 2 and the motor 8 function as a drive source for the vehicle 1'. The ECU 10 controls the motor 8 via an inverter or the like.

The vehicle 1' is also provided with a charging port so that the battery 9 can be charged by an external power supply. The vehicle 1' is therefore a so-called plug-in hybrid vehicle (PHEV).

When the vehicle 1 ' is a plug-in hybrid vehicle, if the state of charge (SOC) of the battery 9 is sufficient, the vehicle 1 ' stops the internal combustion engine 2 and can run in the engine restricted area only by the output of the motor 8. Therefore, when the SOC of the battery 9 is high, it is less necessary to propose transportation of the vehicle 1' in the engine restricted area than when the SOC of the battery 9 is low. Therefore, in the present embodiment, the transportation proposal unit 15 determines whether or not to propose transportation of the vehicle 1 ′ to the occupant of the vehicle 1 ′ based on the SOC of the battery 9 . For example, the transportation proposal unit 15 proposes transportation of the vehicle 1' when the SOC of the battery 9 is less than a predetermined value, and does not propose transportation of the vehicle 1' when the SOC of the battery 9 is equal to or higher than the predetermined value. As a result, transportation of the vehicle 1' can be proposed at a more accurate timing, and unnecessary transportation of the vehicle can be suppressed.

FIG. 11 is a flow chart showing a control routine for transport proposal processing in the second embodiment. This control routine is executed by the processor 13 of the ECU 10 according to a computer program stored in the memory 12 of the ECU 10 .

Steps S201 and S202 are executed in the same manner as steps S101 and S102 in FIG. 7. If it is determined in step S202 that the travel route of the vehicle 1' includes an engine restricted area, the control routine proceeds to step S203.

In step S203, the transportation proposal unit 15 determines whether the SOC of the battery 9 is equal to or higher than a predetermined value. The transportation proposal unit 15 calculates the SOC of the battery 9 by a known method, and calculates the SOC of the battery 9 based on the voltage and temperature of the battery 9 detected by a sensor provided in the battery 9, for example. Note that the transportation proposal unit 15 may calculate the SOC of the battery 9 by integrating the input/output current of the battery 9 detected by a sensor provided in the battery 9 . The predetermined value used for the determination in step S203 is, for example, 40% to 80%, and may be changed according to the size of the engine restricted area or the like. For example, the larger the area of the engine restricted area, the higher the predetermined value.

If it is determined in step S203 that the SOC of the battery 9 is equal to or higher than the predetermined value, this control routine ends. On the other hand, if it is determined in step S203 that the SOC of the battery 9 is less than the predetermined value, the control routine proceeds to step S204. In this case, steps S204 to S206 are executed in the same manner as steps S103 to S105 in FIG.

On the other hand, if it is determined in step S201 that the travel route for the vehicle 1' is not set, the control routine proceeds to step S207. Step S207 is executed in the same manner as step S106 in FIG. 7. If it is determined in step S207 that the distance from the current position of the vehicle 1 to the boundary of the engine restricted area has decreased to a predetermined distance, the control routine proceeds to step S203, and steps S203 to S206 are executed as described above.

Note that the control routine in FIG. 11 can be modified similarly to the control routine in FIG.

<Other embodiments>
Although preferred embodiments according to the present invention have been described above, the present invention is not limited to these embodiments, and various modifications and changes can be made within the scope of the claims. For example, vehicle 1 may be a hybrid vehicle (HEV) or a plug-in hybrid vehicle (PHEV).

Alternatively, the vehicle transport device 30 may be manually operated by an operator. That is, the vehicle transport device 30 may transport the vehicles 1 and 1 ′ by manual operation by the operator based on transport instructions from the management server 20 .

A computer program that causes a computer to implement the functions of the units of the processor 13 of the ECU 10 may be provided in a form stored in a computer-readable recording medium. A computer-readable recording medium is, for example, a magnetic recording medium, an optical recording medium, or a semiconductor memory.

1, 1' Vehicle 2 Internal Combustion Engine 10 Electronic Control Unit (ECU)
13 Processor 15 Transport Proposal Unit 16 Transport Arrangement Unit 20 Management Server 30 Vehicle Transport Device

Claims (8)

a transportation proposal unit that proposes transportation of the vehicle in a predetermined area where driving of the internal combustion engine is prohibited or restricted to an occupant of the vehicle equipped with the internal combustion engine;
A vehicle transportation planning device, comprising: a transportation arrangement unit for requesting arrangement of a vehicle transportation device for transporting the vehicle when the occupant desires transportation of the vehicle. 2. The vehicle transportation planning apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said transportation proposal unit determines whether or not to propose transportation of said vehicle based on a travel route of said vehicle preset in said vehicle. 3. The vehicle transportation planning apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said transportation proposing unit proposes transportation of said vehicle when a distance from a current position of said vehicle to a boundary of said predetermined area has decreased to a predetermined distance. 3. The vehicle transportation planning apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said transportation proposal unit proposes transportation of said vehicle when said vehicle passes through a predetermined position around said predetermined area. The vehicle is a plug-in hybrid vehicle equipped with a battery that can be charged by an external power supply,
5. The vehicle transportation planning apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said transportation proposing unit determines whether to propose transportation of said vehicle based on the SOC of said battery. 6. The vehicle transportation planning apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the transportation arrangement unit transmits the occupant's preference information regarding travel of the vehicle transportation device to a management server that manages transportation of the vehicle when requesting the transportation of the vehicle transportation device. A management server that instructs a vehicle transportation device to transport the vehicle when an occupant of the vehicle equipped with the internal combustion engine wishes to transport the vehicle in a predetermined area where driving of the internal combustion engine is prohibited or restricted. A vehicle transport apparatus configured to transport a vehicle by autonomous driving in a predetermined area when an occupant of a vehicle equipped with an internal combustion engine wishes to transport the vehicle in a predetermined area where driving of the internal combustion engine is prohibited or restricted.

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